How to Break a Heart
by SpikingThePunch
Summary: *rewrite* Cora promised Rumpelstiltskin that no child of hers would ever be his, not knowing she was already pregnant with his baby. She gets rid of the child, having no idea the chain of events she'd set off by doing so. The tale of a mother, the power of three, and a broken relationship.
1. Chapter 1: Prologue

**A/N: Okay, I realized that the old version of this had many mistakes and didn't correlate with the show, so here is the new and improved version! **

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He couldn't believe what he was seeing. He couldn't believe what he wasn't seeing. He was seeing a box. He wasn't seeing a box that contained King Xavier's heart. Rumpelstiltskin was speechless at first. He and Cora had made plans to run away; to be together. And she had gone and ripped out her own heart.

Suddenly, Rumpelstiltskin felt enraged. She had toyed with him! "You never loved me, never." He had thought that after Milah, he finally found someone to love, to hold close. Cora had accepted him as the Dark One and now she was leaving him. "You're not going to get away with this," he threatened. "We had a contract; I'll take your baby!"

Cora seemed unfazed by his attempts at intimidating her. It was so easy to ignore the fear without a heart in her chest. "You changed the contract," she reminded him in a soft, calm voice. "You only get your own child." Her eyes were actually filled with tears; she pitied him and his foolishness. Love was weakness. "And any baby I have, it won't be yours."

Nine months later, sweat beaded on Cora's forehead. She had endured eight long hours of torture and finally it was over.

The sounds of a crying babe filled the air as Cora cradled the newborn against her breast. Though she held the newborn securely, there was no denying the hatred Cora felt towards this… _thing._ She had worked so hard to hide this pregnancy from her husband. She could not risk Henry knowing she was with child considering that said child was not his.

It had only been one night of passion; that night when he taught her to spin straw into gold. While Cora had loved him at the time, after ripping out her heart, it had meant nothing to her. She had been such a fool. She had promised Rumple that any child of hers would not be his. And yet, the newborn she was holding in her arms…

Cora had to get rid of it. She had to get rid of it before Rumpelstiltskin came, for she was so sure that he would know of this birth if he didn't know already; as the Dark One, he knew everything. Even if Cora did not care for this bastard, she would not let Rumpelstiltskin take it from her. She would not let him have that victory.

The child in her arms quieted down, nuzzling against her mother. Cora supposed this was the part where mothers felt this overwhelming sense of love and joy for their children. But she had no heart and could only frown at the child. She refused to claim this bastard as her own.

Henry was away, visiting a neighboring kingdom. He would never know about this. No one would ever know about this. Cora had worked too hard to get to the top and would not let a bastard child of hers and Rumpelstiltskin's get in the way and ruin it all.

This babe could never grow up to do great things. She would never become queen, never be worth anything more than a peasant, perhaps even less than that. And Cora couldn't care less.


	2. Chapter 2

**A/N: Sorry this chapter is so short. Thanks for the reviews! Would you guys prefer longer chapters or are the short ones fine? Because if no one has any issues, then I'll just keep the chapters short, though keep in mind that doesn't necessarily mean quicker updates. So short or long chapters?**

**Disclaimer: I don't own Once Upon a Time**

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Cora had mixed feelings about Wonderland. Of course, she adored the fact that she ruled it. But after a while, the place lost its novelty. She had grown so used to the wearisome madness that it had become a bit mundane.

Sometimes she would reflect on when Regina pushed her through the mirror to pass the endless amount of time she had. It angered her to think that her daughter would go to such lengths to get rid of her. And then she would remember. She would remember the great lengths she went to in order to get rid of her first two children, especially the second one.

Using her magic, Cora had managed to send the child to another kingdom where it had hopefully starved to death or contracted an illness. It didn't occur to her that anyone would come across the newborn in the woods and want to take it in. Who would want such a pathetic creature to take care of?

She had such high hopes for Regina, the one who would end up being queen. But then she had wanted to go run off with that pathetic stable boy and ruin everything Cora had worked for. Well, that problem had been easily dealt with.

But Regina had pushed her through the mirror. While Cora knew that Regina had been foolish for doing so, at least she was queen in Wonderland. The people feared her and were willing to do anything for her, as it should be. Cora took great pleasure in seeing them tremble in her presence, utterly terrified.

"Your majesty," greeted a guard as he knelt before his queen. "A stranger has been found; someone not from here. We've taken her prisoner."

Frowning slightly, Cora lowered her intricately designed mask. It was rare that a stranger had come to Wonderland; it was hardly anyone's favorite place to go. "Bring the prisoner forward," Cora commanded and the guards did so.

A girl was brought forward, no older than sixteen years old. Cora stiffened when she noticed the girl's hair that was held in a single braid. It was the color of gold, almost as golden as what Rumpelstiltskin spun straw into. Suddenly, this girl started to seem familiar. Keeping her composure, Cora stepped down from her throne and walked up to the girl, examining her further. "You dare intrude on my kingdom?"

"It wasn't on purpose, believe me."

Cora raised her eyebrows, not wanting to believe her suspicions. No, this girl could not be who she thought her to be. She had banished her second child to another kingdom. And this girl was in her teens. Cora's second daughter should be at least a year old than Regina.

"Your name, girl."

The prisoner did not respond at first. She held Cora's threatening gaze with a cold one of her own, her pale lips pursed. Finally, she answered. "My name is Jane."

Jane, such a common name, Cora thought to herself. Obviously this girl couldn't be worth much of anything to warrant the name Jane. Bored with her already, the Queen of Hearts waved her hand dismissively. "Take her to the dungeons."

Panic became evident in Jane's as the guards grabbed her arms again. "What? No!" she protested as she started struggling to break free. Her hands jerked, as if casting a spell and then suddenly, the guards that had been trying to drag her away froze where they stood; completely paralyzed.

Cora raised her eyebrows in surprise. It was as if the guards had suddenly become statues. This was highly unusual and intrigued the queen. She smiled with hints of malice. "Tell me, Jane. How did you find yourself in Wonderland?"

"That's kind of a long story."


End file.
